A lot has been stated in the press just a while ago about the bingo industry being hurt as a consequence of the anti smoking law in England. Conditions have become so awful that in Scotland the Bingo industry has called for huge tax cuts to help keep the industry from going bankrupt. However does the online variation of this quintessential game present a lifeline, or might it not compare to its real life relative?
Bingo has been an familiar game usually played by the "blue haired" generation. In any case the game recently had experienced a recent comeback in appeal with younger members of society deciding to visit the bingo parlors in place of the bars on a Friday night. All this is about to be reversed with the legislating of the smoking ban across UK.
No more will gamblers be allowed to puff on cigarettes whilst marking off their numbers. Beginning in the summer of ‘07 every public area will not be allowed to permit smoking in their locations and this includes Bingo halls, which are possibly the most common places where people enjoy smoking.
The effects of the cigarette ban can already be seen in Scotland where smoking is already forbidden in the bingo parlours. Numbers have dropped and the business is literally struggling for its life. But where have the players gone? Surely they have not abandoned this classic game?
The answer is on the web. People realise that they can enjoy bingo from their computer at the same time enjoying a beverage and smoke and still have a chance at massive prizes. This is a recent anomaly and has happened almost perfectly with the ban on cigarettes.
Of course betting on on the web could never replace the social portion of heading over to the bingo hall, but for a group of players the law has left a number of bingo enthusiasts with little option.